Ras Al Khaimah is planning a new astronaut training experience in the UAE.
While space travel was once reserved for trained professional astronauts and scientists, and regarded as one of humanity’s greatest collective achievements, the astronaut experience is increasingly becoming something that can be packaged, purchased, and consumed.
Ras Al Khaimah’s planned astronaut training experience reflects this shift. The result of a partnership between Blinc Space and Action Flight Aviation, the project intends to give an astronaut-inspired experience that combines high G-force and aerobic flights, designed to mimic the conditions outside Earth’s protective atmosphere. Astronaut preparation skills are also planned, such as freefall and parachute sky jumps, mental awareness and reaction tests, and zero-gravity environments. Training will take place in the remote Ras Al Khaimah landscape – a mix of sprawling desert terrain and harsh mountain peaks.
Prospective attendees should note the program has no actual bearings on the science of real-life space travel or the years of rigorous scientific, engineering, and operational training undertaken by professional astronauts, and is entirely simulatory. Instead, it translates elements of the astronaut experience into an immersive training-style activity. Participants will not be preparing for space missions, contributing to aerospace research, or gaining qualifications recognised by space agencies.
Instead, the experience is best understood as an adventure tourism product that borrows the aesthetics and terminology of astronaut training to create an immersive, aspirational experience. According to Blinc Space’s website, ‘These programs serve as entry points into the private space ecosystem, feeding education, training, and innovation pipelines.’
As the advent of civilian space travel potentially draws nearer, commercial astro training is set to be in growing demand. In the UK, Blue Abyss has released plans to create an 164-ft pool, intended for human testing in extreme conditions. Spaceflight training company Orbite has secured millions in funding for its astronaut-style experiences, with a first campus slated for 2027. Again, neither of these companies are planning to ever get people up to space – if they do launch, their role is purely related to preparation.
And amid all these proposed preparation facilities, while NASA’s recent Artemis II mission proved space travel still has the power to unite the world in awe, private programs hoping to get civilians into space are proving tricky to get off the ground. Virgin Galactic, which fetches up to $1m per seat for its 90-minute sub-orbital expeditions, paused its trips from 2024 to focus on testing (although there are whispers of journeys being resumed in the near future.)
Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin, on the other hand, has halted both flights and testing following the explosion of a rocket in Florida. On social media, the company called the accident (in which no one was harmed or injured) an ‘anomaly.’ For the time being, parachuting from a place in the middle of the desert might be the best way to get a taste of astronaut life.
This is the second extra añejo expression from the brand, but it’s something very different. This is the second extra añejo expression from the brand, but it’s something very different.
Chanel’s Riviera retreat, Versace’s South Beach mansion, Louboutin’s Portuguese enclave – fashion’s great names shape not only what we wear, but where we want to go.
When your suitcase is already filled with their designs, the next natural step is to book a night in one of their properties. But while fashion’s relationship with hospitality is not exactly a novelty these days – with brands like Bulgari and Armani building lavish hotels around the world, and Louis Vuitton preparing to join them with its forthcoming Paris property – the most fascinating stays aren’t necessarily the ones carrying a logo over the door.
Scattered across the French Riviera, the Portuguese coast, and the Caribbean are private villas, country estates, and boutique hotels conceived by some of fashion’s most influential figures. These branded residences (in the truest meaning of the phrase) offer a true taste of the makers behind your favorite label, and a chance to step directly into the personal world of the designers themselves.
Whether it’s Christian Louboutin’s colorful hideaway villas in Portugal, Coco Chanel’s beloved artist retreat on the French Riviera, or Gianni Versace’s maximalist Florida mansion, these are the homes and hotels that reveal how fashion’s biggest names really live, entertain, and escape.
The homes of luxury fashion designers you can stay in
Coco Chanel’s Villa La Pausa Perched above Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, La Pausa is the French Riviera retreat built from the ground up by Gabrielle ‘Coco’ Chanel in 1928. The villa became the designer’s sanctuary away from Paris and a gathering place for some of the era’s most influential creative minds, including Salvador Dalí, Colette, and Luchino Visconti. After acquiring the property in 2015, Chanel embarked on an extensive restoration led by architect Peter Marino, painstakingly returning the house to its original appearance using archival photographs and recovered furnishings.
Today, La Pausa has been reimagined not as a hotel, but as a cultural residence, hosting writers, artists, and creatives through invitation-only programs supported by the Chanel Culture Fund. For most travelers, a stay remains firmly out of reach, but for a select group of invited residents, the chance to spend a few nights in Chanel’s private world is once again possible.
Karl Lagerfeld’s Villa La Vigie Similar to his former employer’s founder, Karl Lagerfeld was also drawn to the French Riviera, choosing Villa La Vigie as his private summer refuge. Perched above Monte-Carlo Beach with sweeping views across the coastline towards Cap-Martin, the Belle Époque mansion was long associated with the designer’s ritual escape from Paris. He would spend extended periods there photographing, entertaining, and observing life from its expansive terraces.
Though originally built in the early 1900s, following a meticulous restoration, the villa is now available for private rental through select luxury operators, complete with full service, security, and access to Monte-Carlo Beach amenities.
Christian Dior’s Château La Colle Noire Long before it became one of the fashion world’s most coveted invitations, Château La Colle Noire was Christian Dior’s beloved Provençal escape. The designer purchased the sprawling estate near Grasse in 1951 and devoted himself to restoring the property, transforming it into a fragrant retreat surrounded by rose gardens, olive groves, and the flowers that would inspire many of his perfumes.
Following an extensive renovation by the House of Dior, the château has been returned to its former grandeur and now serves as an exclusive venue for private gatherings, cultural events, and intimate brand retreats. Overnight stays are not available to the public, but a select group of guests is occasionally invited to experience the estate firsthand, most recently including Alexa Chung.
GianniVersace’s Villa Casa Casuarina Partly thanks to the maximalist design courtesy of its former owner (and partly due to it being the site of his tragic murder), few homes have achieved near-mythical status quite like Villa Casa Casuarina, formerly known as the Versace Mansion. Purchased by Gianni Versace in 1992, the South Beach property became an extravagant expression of the designer’s OTT vision, with mosaic-lined courtyards, frescoed ceilings, and a gilded aesthetic inspired by Italian palazzos.
Unlike many designer residences, however, this one can still be experienced firsthand. Now operating as a boutique hotel, the property offers a limited number of guest suites, allowing visitors to stay within the walls of one of fashion’s most famous homes while many of Versace’s original decorative flourishes remain intact.
Christian Louboutin’s Vermelho Melides Hotel, and Villas La Salvada and La Maison des Bateaux Christian Louboutin’s Portuguese passion project began with Vermelho, the jewel-box hotel he opened in the coastal village of Melides in 2023. This once sleepy corner of Portugal is where Louboutin has spent years championing and quietly transforming into one of Europe’s most intriguing creative enclaves. Filled with handcrafted details, antiques, and the designer’s eclectic collection of art and curiosities, the property offers perhaps the closest insight yet into Louboutin’s richly layered aesthetic.
For those seeking an even more personal experience, however, in late 2025, the designer expanded his hospitality portfolio with two private residences: La Salvada and La Maison des Bateaux. Tucked among the pine forests and sandy landscapes of the Alentejo coast, the villas reflect the same playful maximalism found at Vermelho while offering far greater privacy and space.
Oscar de la Renta’s Punta Cana Resort The Dominican Republic wasn’t just Oscar de la Renta’s birthplace, but the Caribbean island became one of his great design projects. As a longtime resident and partner of Punta Cana Resort & Club, the designer left an indelible mark on the destination. Most notably through the creation of Tortuga Bay, the resort’s flagship hotel, where he personally shaped the interiors and aesthetic of its collection of beachfront villas.
Beyond the hotel, de la Renta also designed a number of private residences throughout the resort community, splashing his hallmark style of vibrant colors and nature-inspired motifs to sprawling family compounds surrounded by tropical gardens. While many remain privately owned, select villas within Punta Cana Resort & Club occasionally become available for rental through luxury villa programs.
Tucked away on a Swiss mountaintop, the world-leading Clinic Les Alpes is a fully licensed, in-patient medical recovery facility catering to the elite—and is a decades-long passion project of its founder. Tucked away on a Swiss mountaintop, the world-leading Clinic Les Alpes is a fully licensed, in-patient medical recovery facility catering to the elite—and is a decades-long passion project of its founder.
The ultimate guide to London’s most glamorous neighborhood.
Mayfair, the final square on the London Monopoly board, has long occupied a place in the public imagination as London’s ultimate address. Bordered by Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly, and Park Lane, this pocket of the West End is home to some of the city’s most sought-after real estate, hotels, private members’ clubs, and restaurant tables.
It wasn’t always this way. Four centuries ago, Mayfair was little more than muddy fields on the edge of the city. The district takes its name from the May Fair, an annual gathering that took place in what is now Shepherd Market between 1686 and 1764. Rope-dancers, prize fighters, bookmakers, and traders flocked to the fair each spring, much to the irritation of nearby landowners, who eventually succeeded in having it shut down.
The neighborhood we know today began to emerge in the early 18th century when the Grosvenor family acquired the land and developed a series of elegant squares and townhouses. Grosvenor Square, Hanover Square, and Berkeley Square soon attracted aristocrats, diplomats, and members of the royal court, establishing Mayfair as one of London’s most desirable addresses. By the 1940s, Grosvenor Square had become known as ‘Little America’ thanks to the presence of the US Embassy, and Berkeley Square’s plane trees, planted in 1789, still stand today.
In 2026, embassies occupy former mansions, luxury boutiques sit alongside centuries-old institutions, and some of the city’s most talked-about openings continue to choose Mayfair as their home. Whether you’re visiting for a weekend or simply crossing town for dinner, these are the top things to do in Mayfair.
Even in a neighborhood filled with luxury shopping, New Bond Street is the one most people make a beeline for. Many of the world’s biggest fashion houses, jewelers, and watchmakers have flagship stores here, alongside galleries, specialist dealers, and auction houses that have been part of Mayfair for generations.
If you’re looking for British brands, you’ll find names such as Church’s, which has been making shoes since 1873, and Boodles, the fine jeweler founded in Liverpool and long associated with Mayfair. International labels have some of their largest London stores here too, including Chanel, Alaïa, Louis Vuitton, Dior, Versace, Givenchy, and Zegna.
Watch and jewelry collectors are particularly well catered for. Within a few blocks, you’ll find boutiques from Patek Philippe, Breguet, Blancpain, Chopard, Van Cleef & Arpels, Graff, David Morris, Panerai, Breitling, and Pomellato, among many others.
If you are planning to shop, it’s worth booking ahead. Many of the stores offer private appointments, whether that’s a styling session at Alaïa, personalization services at Louis Vuitton, or a consultation with a fashion advisor at Chanel.
Opened in 1819, Burlington Arcade remains one of Mayfair’s most unchanged spaces, still remarkably close to its original form despite the city evolving around it.
The shopping arcade was commissioned by Lord George Cavendish as a place where his wife could shop away from London’s crowded streets and was originally lined with independent merchants selling gloves, hats and jewelry. That retail spirit still carries through today – some businesses have been here for generations, including N.Peal, which has occupied its space for almost 90 years, and behind the uniform shopfronts, you’ll find watch specialists, cashmere houses, leather goods makers, and jewelers.
Collectors are drawn to the names that exist nowhere else. The Vintage Watch Company has made Burlington Arcade the sole home of its rare Rolex collection, while Somlo Omega Vintage and the men’s boutique from Manolo Blahnik are similarly exclusive.
Keep an eye out for the Beadles as you walk through. Dressed in frock coats and top hats, they have patrolled the arcade since it opened and still enforce rules set out in 1819. Running, cycling, opening umbrellas, and ‘behaving boisterously’ are all prohibited. Whistling is banned, too.
Before you leave, seek out one of Mayfair’s quieter secrets. Hidden beneath the boutique of British jeweler Stephen Webster is No Regrets, a small, no-website, no-Instagram speakeasy serving miniature iced martinis on engraved silver trays.
Mayfair isn’t just London’s luxury shopping district. It is also the center of the city’s commercial art market, where many of the world’s leading galleries, auction houses, and private dealers operate within a few blocks of one another.
A walk through the neighborhood offers a snapshot of the global art world. Historic Cork Street remains its spiritual heart, while surrounding streets house galleries specializing in everything from post-war masters and contemporary art to photography, sculpture, and rare works on paper. During Frieze week and the major auction seasons, the area becomes one of the most active collecting hubs in Europe.
For museum-caliber exhibitions, begin at the Royal Academy of Arts before exploring the commercial galleries nearby. International powerhouses such as Gagosian, Hauser & Wirth, and David Zwirner regularly stage major exhibitions. Collectors with more specific interests are equally well served: Hamiltons Gallery is a destination for fine-art photography, while galleries such as Bowman Sculpture and Halcyon Gallery have built loyal followings among international buyers.
No art-focused visit is complete without stepping inside Sotheby’s on New Bond Street. The pre-sale exhibitions are open to the public and frequently bring together museum-quality paintings, jewelry, watches, and collectibles that would otherwise spend their lives in private collections.
After a morning spent browsing Bond Street boutiques and exploring galleries, afternoon tea is a good excuse to slow down for a couple of hours.
The tradition is most often linked to Anna, 7th Duchess of Bedford, who is said to have started requesting tea, sandwiches, and cakes to bridge the long gap between lunch and the fashionably late Victorian dinner hour. Whether she truly invented afternoon tea is still debated, but the ritual quickly caught on among London’s social set and has remained part of British tradition ever since.
Mayfair is home to nearly all of London’s best afternoon tea spots, so visitors are truly spoiled for choice. The Ritz London continues to draw visitors looking for London’s most famous afternoon tea. Served in the Palm Court, the experience comes with a choice of around 20 teas, live piano or harp music, and staff who know the finer points of tea-making inside out, having spent months in Sri Lanka sourcing and refining blends. The dress code is strictly enforced, so it’s worth dressing the part.
Another of the capital’s grand dames, Claridge’s, serves afternoon tea daily in its Art Deco foyer, beneath a striking Dale Chihuly chandelier, with live music from a pianist and cellist providing the soundtrack. Just across the neighborhood, The Dorchester offers an equally impressive spread in The Promenade.
Another great afternoon tea location is Fortnum & Mason, one of London’s heritage department stores, on nearby Piccadilly, a space that has been serving afternoon tea for roughly a century. It is served in the Diamond Jubilee Tea Salon on the fourth floor, a space reopened by Queen Elizabeth II in 2012.
Mayfair has long been one of London’s best places for a drink, whether that’s a perfectly made Martini, a tasting of a rare bottle, or something a little more inventive.
At The Connaught Hotel, the bar has become a destination in its own right. The famed Instagram-ready martini trolley glides between tables as expert mixologists Agostino Perrone and Giorgio Bargiani continue to refine one of London’s most copied drinks rituals. While you’re there, seek out the velvet curtain at the back of the Champagne Room. Behind it sits The Red Room, an intimate wine bar lined with marble and backed by a cellar containing around 30,000 bottles.
Another popular option is the legendary Dukes Bar. The space is often linked to Ian Fleming, who was a regular and is widely believed to have drawn inspiration here while creating James Bond. Martinis are strong enough that guests are limited to just two.
For something more discreet, look for the unmarked entrance to 42, hidden beside Gymkhana. Inside, you’ll find low lighting, hanging oil paintings, and a lot of crushed velvet – as well as an impressive cocktail list which showcases Indian ingredients and nostalgic Indian flavours, and a selection of rare whiskies and champagnes.
On Dover Street, The Dover has quickly become one of the neighborhood’s most sought-after tables. Even if you’re not staying for dinner, it’s worth stopping by for an ice-cold Martini.
Mayfair has one of the highest concentrations of destination restaurants in London, and many of the neighborhood’s headline openings are found inside its hotels. The Chancery Rosewood is home to both Tobi Masa, the Japanese restaurant led by chef Tamas Naszai, and Carbone London, the first UK outpost of the New York institution known for its Italian-American menu and celebrity following.
At The Connaught, guests can choose between Jean-Georges at The Connaught, the first UK restaurant from chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten, and Hélène Darroze at The Connaught, which holds three Michelin stars. If fine dining is your thing, Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester is another one of the few UK restaurants with three Michelin stars.
Mount Street has become a dining destination in its own right. Scott’s has occupied its current Grade II-listed home since 1967 and remains one of London’s best-known seafood restaurants, serving oysters, shellfish and British-caught fish. A few doors away, 34 Mayfair focuses on British classics, steaks and grilled meats, while Automat is one of the street’s newer arrivals, bringing an Anglo-American menu of burgers, martinis and comfort-food staples to interiors inspired by mid-century New York.
Japanese dining is particularly strong in Mayfair. At Sushi Kanesaka, inside 45 Park Lane, guests sit for an Edomae-style omakase overseen by chef Shinji Kanesaka, and Sushi Amamoto on Albemarle Street, the first international outpost of the Taipei restaurant known for its year-long waiting list, offers just a handful of seats around the counter.
The painstaking conversion process is documented in the latest installment of his show «On the Roam.» The painstaking conversion process is documented in the latest installment of his show «On the Roam.»
Our resident drinks expert Alice Lascelles reveals what she’ll be sipping on during the World Cup.
But on laid-back summer evenings the to-and-fro between hard liquor and ice-cold beer is often what I crave.
In Germany they call it a herrengedeck. In Scotland they call it a ‘hauf and a hauf’ (half and a half). In Korea, they drop their shot of soju actually into their lager to make a somaek, or the Korean answer to a Depth Charge.
In America, of course, it’s known as a ‘boilermaker’ – a reference to the drink’s blue-collar origins, and the fact it was a favorite fortifier of locomotive engineers, or boilermakers, after a hard day’s work.
What makes a good pairing? If you’re doing it right each sip should leave you wanting a little bit more of the other. Drinks that compliment each other in weight and flavor often do this best: heavy/light, warming/fresh, sweet/salt.
Bourbon and lager is a classic combination for this reason – the former is sweet and spicy, the latter crisp and dry. Try a mid-weight bourbon such as Michter’s Bourbon or Woodford Reserve with a hoppy brew like Pilsner Urquell. Heaven Hill is so devoted to boilermakers it runs a competition every year, challenging bartenders to come up with evermore creative pairings. The competition’s organiser Chris Smith recommends Evan Williams or Elijah Craig as the perfect partner for a Pils.
In the market for something… trashier? Then pair your whiskey with a down-and-dirty pickle beer: Donna’s Pickle Beer has gained a cult following in the US. In London, meanwhile, the Experimental Cocktail Club Chinatown serves a housemade pickle beer based on the excellent Braybrooke Pilsner, alongside shots of fancy cognac.
Agave spirits and beer are also made for each other. Especially when they’re served, as they often are in Mexico, with a dish of juicy, sal de gusano-dusted orange wedges on the side. Try Quiquiriqui’s pine-y single estate Tobala with a well-chilled Cervesa Victoria (which flows like water in Mexico) or Modelo Especial as a chaser. At Side Hustle in London they pair the hard-to-find Fortaleza Reposado Winter Blend tequila with a taster of Krug Champagne. “The acidity and yeasty notes of the champagne compliment the bolder, oak flavors of the tequila — it it works the other way around,” says NoMad head of bars Maxim Schulte.
New York’s Katana Kitten specialises in boilermakers with a Japanese accent. Suntory’s easy-drinking Toki blended whisky is paired with a lager; while a shot of yuzu sake partners up with an Other Half IPA. At the innovative Oddball bar in Alphabet City, meanwhile, you can sip an Umenoyado Green Tea Umeshu (plum sake) alongside a Farm One lager brewed with lemon basil.
NYC’s award-winning Superbueno bar has created a riff on its signature boilermaker, Dashi Papi, for every match in the soccer World Cup. For the USA vs Australia game, for example, they’ve laced a shot of Don Julio 1942 with Aussie vegemite, while the Mexico vs Czechia game sees the tequila laced with hints of cherry and caraway. But the no-frills ‘beer and a bump’ remains, in the words of head bartender Keith Moffitt, “the ultimate old-school bartender’s choice.”
The Boilerfaker – which sees a full-strength spirit paired with a non-alc beer – has lately become one of my favorite drinks. You get all the refreshment and flavour of the real thing but keep a reasonably clear head.
America’s number one non-alc brewer Athletic Brewing recently created a superb 0.5 percent abv red ale, Clock End, for Premier League champions Arsenal (who also happen to be my team). I’ll be sipping this, while I watch the World Cup games, with a sweet-and-smoky dram of Lagavulin 16.
At Trick Dog in San Francisco they do a fully non-alc pairing of Guinness 0.0 and a shot of cold brew – guaranteed to pick you up whether you’re grafting on a locomotive or simply watching the TV.
